Frequently Asked Questions

All OBR homes are supplied with enough essentials to get your week at the beach started. These include: toilet paper and liquid hand soap in each bathroom, trash can liners and a large capacity garbage bag, dish liquid and dishwashing detergent, paper towels and laundry detergent. Depending upon usage and the size of your party, you may need to supplement some of these items during the course of your stay.

Check-in time is 6:00 p.m. June through September, 5:00 p.m. all other times of the year. We want to get you into your home and on with your vacation as soon as possible. In some cases, a house may be ready before your scheduled check-in time. We are in constant communication with our Cleaning and Maintenance Staff and we’ll be glad to let you into your rental home once it is ready. However, please wait for permission from the OBR office before you enter the home and begin unpacking to ensure that all necessary OBR Staff has confirmed the house is ready. We ask that your first stop be at the appropriate OBR office so that we can review the check-in status of your home with you.

Remember to ask your Guest Services Representative about local activities, stores, restaurants, historic landmarks, accessible beaches, piers and more. Also, please provide your cell phone or pager number and we will contact you as soon as your cottage is available!

Don’t worry! If you do not arrive in time for check-in, our Guest Services Representatives will leave a Check-in packet, including keys and a map to your cottage, in the foyer of your designated office. Packets are filed in alphabetical order by cottage name. Stop by the office the next day to finish the check-in process.

First, don’t forget your food and personal items. We also ask that dishes are washed and put away and trash is taken out. Secure windows, set the thermostat to 72 degrees and lock the door behind you. Remember to return your keys, cottage map and any items you rented from OBR to the appropriate office.

Many homes have private pools, or an OBR or subdivision pool pass may be included with your reservation. Daily or weekly passes to the OBR pool in Avon are also available for sale if your cottage does not provide one to you. Members of the Outer Beaches Realty Beach Club have free use of the OBR pool in Avon. Some of OBR’s homes offer free solar heating for chilly spring and fall days. Other pools are electrically or gas heated at an additional cost of $400 per week (plus tax and travel insurance premium, if selected). Homes with a metered gas supply will be assessed a charge based on actual usage at market rate on Hatteras Island for propane gas during the period of use. Pool heat, when selected and paid as part of the reservation, is turned on the day of arrival.

Bed linens and/or towels are not automatically included with your rental. Please review the individual cottage details to see if the cottage you are renting includes these amenities. Note: Not all cottages offering bed linens offer towels. Please review the information that appears near the top of your Vacation Rental Agreement. If that information does not state “Beds Made,” sheets are not included. If the information does not state “Towels Provided,” towels are not included. To order bed linens and/or towels, if not already included with your cottage, please contact our Guest Services department at 800-627-1850 at least two weeks prior to your arrival date to place your order and make payment.